Barbara Coe remembered for her fighting spirit

Barbara Coe of the California Coalition for Immigration Reform demonstrated outside the Newport Beach Hotel where John McCain was appearing in 2008. JEBB HARRIS, FILE: THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

HUNTINGTON BEACH – With her trademark red, white and blue flag jacket on display, Barbara Coe was remembered Saturday as a strong voice in the anti-illegal immigration movement.

“She was, in the truest sense, an American patriot,” said U.S. Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R-Costa Mesa.

Coe was a feisty, brave, courageous fighter with a strong love for family and country, friends and family said Saturday during a memorial service at Refuge Calvary Chapel.

The 79-year-old grandmother “was a cross between ‘I Love Lucy’ and General Patton,” said daughter Kathy Vuono.

Coe died of lung cancer on Aug. 31.

The Huntington Beach resident who founded Citizens for Action Now and the California Coalition for Immigration Reform had a prominent role in the anti-illegal immigration campaign, co-authoring the controversial Proposition 187.

The 1994 initiative sought to deny illegal immigrants access to public services. Voters approved the measure, called SOS, or Save Our State. But a federal court judge later ruled it was unconstitutional.

Her activism drew national scrutiny -- praise as well as harsh criticism. On Saturday, Coe was remembered as a tough leader with a courageous spirit who fought for what she believed in and left a legacy for others to build upon.

“If you want to remember her, get that much more active,” said Ted Hayes, a Los Angeles advocate for the homeless who founded several organizations, including an African-American anti-illegal immigrant group. “Don’t let people call you a racist just because you love your country.”

Chelene Nightingale, a friend and 2010 gubernatorial candidate, told some 130 gathered for the memorial that Coe had the mark of a true leader, one who could inspire others “to take action with respect and love.”

“It used to make me angry to hear people call her a racist,” Nightingale said. “She was so loving.”

To her grandchildren, Coe was their beloved “Bubba” who wrote them poems and taught them about determination and hard work. To Vuono, her mother was loving, giving, inspiring. She also was “a kick.”

“I remember when she tried waterskiing in Lake Arrowhead with curlers in her hair and a cig hanging off her lip,” Vuono said.

Coe was born on Dec. 6, 1933, in Philip, S.D. She worked for TRW Credit Data, where she became a supervisor and led seminars across the country on how to detect and combat credit fraud, her daughter said. She later went to work for the City of Anaheim as a senior crime analyst.

Coe was forced to leave Anaheim police, accused of using department equipment to promote Prop. 187. Vuono said her mother was “silenced for the sake of political correctness.”

Coe became an activist after trying to help an elderly friend get social services. She said immigrants who had entered the country illegally could get services, but her friend, a veteran, was denied.

On Saturday, tables filled with memorabilia displayed old photos, along with certificates and plaques honoring Coe. Among them: the “Balls of Steel” award from a group called March for Justice Campaign and an autographed photo of former National Rifle Association President Charlton Heston, holding a rifle.

Rohrabacher made one final presentation: a flag flown over the Capitol in honor of “a tireless advocate for her beloved U.S.A.”

Coe, the congressman said, is likely “at the gates of heaven, making sure that the only people who get in are the ones who are supposed to get in.”

Coe is survived by her long-time partner, Larry Jensen; her children, Kathy Vuono and David Coe, (another daughter, Suzan Metildi, died four years ago,) and three grandchildren.

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Barbara Coe of the California Coalition for Immigration Reform demonstrated outside the Newport Beach Hotel where John McCain was appearing in 2008. JEBB HARRIS, FILE: THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Barbara Coe was the co-author of Proposition 187 and a leader of the anti-illegal immigrant movement. Shown above in 2002. ANA VENEGAS, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Barbara Coe, center, visits with friends before heading to the U.S.-Mexico border near Campo in 2006. FILE: RYAN HODGSON-RIGSBEE, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
At left, Barbara Coe, chairwoman for the California Coalition for Immigration Reform, listens to Frank Barbaro, then chairman of the Orange County Democratic party, in 2006. ANA VENEGAS, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Barbara Coe, left, head of the anti-illegal immigration group California Coalition for Immigration Reform, greets Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio as he prepares to speak to a crowd of supporters at the Phoenix Rising rally in 2010. LEONARD ORTIZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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